William De Lancey Ellwanger

Born in Rochester, New York, William De Lancey Ellwanger lived from 1854 to 1913 and moved between law and literature with unusual ease. Available reference material describes him as a lawyer and poet; he studied at Yale, was admitted to the bar in 1878, and spent much of his life in Rochester.

His books show a wide range of interests. A Summer Snowflake and Drift of Other Verse and Song appeared in 1902, followed by The Oriental Rug in 1903, a work for which later sources describe him as an authority on Oriental rugs. In 1909 he published A Snuff-Box Full of Trees, & Some Apocryphal Essays, a title that hints at the reflective, literary side of his writing.

Ellwanger is not widely remembered today, but his work still stands out for its blend of taste, curiosity, and turn-of-the-century charm. Whether writing verse or prose, he seems drawn to subjects that reward close looking and quiet appreciation.